Light the Darkness
by Lyss92
Summary: Her name's Moriko,her partners Katsu.She's searching for something,a person that's been missing for nearly 10 yrs.She takes on missions to pass the time,but what happens when an old friend asks her for a favor... she isn't into training others, but...
1. Chapter 1

Disclaimer: I do **not** own Naruto, only my obvious characters.

Light the Darkness

Chapter: 1

Life was never full of gumdrops and rainbows, nor bubblegum and fairies, but then again life never was for a ninja. It was always a cluster-fuck of discipline and determination being able to transform long hours of training full of blood, sweat, and tears into something miraculous and life changing.

When your young, impressionable, the picture of innocence, that's when you believe the world is all flowers and rainbows, with prancing unicorns. The mind cant tolerate a human being, being anything less than good and pure. Trust is given freely. Nothing is tainted by the touch of evil, because a child, the picture of innocence cant depict such an occurrence, it doesn't understand.

_I didn't understand…_

One minute I believed my world to be the picture of wondrous excitement. Yes, the way the plants danced in the wind, the manipulation of colors in the sky when the glowing sphere of light rose in the morning and descended in the evening, everything was as it was. No care in the world, _I_ didn't have a care in the world, until that day…

"Thinking about the past wont change what is, things happen for a reason Moriko even if we don't necessarily understand that reason…"

"I know, but on a peaceful day like today… it brings back a few memories is all. Did you grab the scrolls Katsu?" reluctantly I rose from my sprawled position on the fresh grass beneath, loving how it brushed against my bare arms as I moved. Peering behind me I watched Katsu, my permanent summoning beast, as he stood, scroll swinging from his closed muzzle as he gazed at the shifting clouds in a sea of blue.

Since before I could remember I've had Katsu, I even named him. For the longest time I thought he was a dog, more specifically a German Shepherd, and for a while he didn't correct me, it wasn't until my brother said that he was a fox that I realized that in fact he was one, which I'm still slightly baffled as to how I would even think he was a dog, he was definitely all fox. His silky coat had mixtures of brindle and burnt orange, he had a small milky white path that speared over his chest and belly contrasting heavily with his dark coat. In all honesty he was a handsome fox, the perfect picture of what a fox should look like, even his slanted golden hued eyes made him look majestic and untamed, but don't get me wrong, he was completely loyal.

The clouds twisted and bunched together as Katsu starred almost dazed at the clouds, Moriko was right, one could become lost in their thoughts on a day like today.

"Moriko, we should find some sort of shelter, the scent of rain is in the air, it wont be long before the sky's gray and the winds strong. I have a feeling that we'll be in doors for the rest of the day with this one," Katsu made it more of a statement than a question.

"I know, I could feel the pressure building while I was waiting for you to make it back here," I muttered with a grin before adding, "slow poke," earning me a meaningful glare.

"Let's move out then, is our hideout still concealed from before?"

"Yeah I managed to check it out, it still looks like it did before we left, there isn't a thing missing nor changed, we'll be dry and warm there. Did you read the scroll?" I asked, curiosity getting the better of me as he handed it over.

"No, I only retrieved it from our employer, I figured we could read over it together." Carefully I placed it in my pack on my hip and we casually set off.

"Hmm… what type of mission do you think it is this time?" I was genuinely curious, we were on a personal mission all the time, we only picked up rogue missions if it was on the way, it kept us busy and our skills up to par.

"Well from the nerves coming off the guy he was either afraid of being caught, or, he was afraid of failing his mission, it's just a hunch, but I'm thinking it's either an infiltration or assassination," Katsu said looking meaningful at the possibilities.

"That nervous huh?" he assured me with a light nod. "Well then, this should be fun, I haven't had to work hard in a while, did they meet the qualifications?"

"If your asking if they paid half up front, the answer is the obvious, of course, we wouldn't have taken the mission otherwise and its obviously important enough to were they agreed." nuzzling into his small pack at his side he pulled out large wallet and handed it over to me.

"Well looks like this mission will be worth my time after all," I said as I scanned through its contents.

"Do we need to stop in that small village near by, or did you already get a few things from the market?"

"No worries, what did ya think, I just sat on my butt and contemplated suicide all day? Geeze Katsu have a little faith, I made sure things were ready when you got back, I'll cook and while we eat we can go over the contents of the scroll and head out tomorrow morning depending on the mission," I said in exasperation.

"I only ask because… well-" he was cut off with his stomach growling in response.

"No worries I got you covered, your partner's always got your back, I got some nice slabs of beef and ramen," I said laughing as he blushed. "The man I bought them from was eager to finally have someone able to buy his products, although I think he jacked the prices up just because I said I'd buy it…" I muttered remembering the greedy gleam in his eyes as I pulled out my money for the purchase. Its not like I really needed the money to begin with, I had plenty, but it was the principle of it all that annoyed me.

"The people here were barely making it until recently, its common that they would try and make the most profit they could off of a foreigner, especially a ninja."

"I know. He's just lucky I understood the circumstances, if it were anyone else… they wouldn't have been so nice about it."

"Well things will settle down soon, I'm almost sure of it."

"Yes, your right. Enough talk about the village, lets just hurry and get to our _hide out, _this mission should take top priority right now, later after the mission, I'll send a letter to Konoha asking them for a favor, I'm sure they'll help smooth things over for the villagers, convince them to become one with their neighboring village to the east."

Katsu nodded his approval and ran with her through the tree's, staying camouflaged within the shadows and tree tops. Konoha wouldn't be able to help the villagers much, but they could speed up the process of joining the two villages and help convince some of the other rebellious citizens to go along with the transaction.

_For now I need to stay focused on the mission. I'll worry about everything else later._

"Then lets get moving, the rains setting in fast. Tomorrow there's a possibility that we'll be leaving for this mission, we need to pack our weapons and go over the instructions."

~Yeah so I decided to start a Naruto series, I've been thinking about this one for a while. I've been thinking about possible beginnings for this one, possible comrades and such. Katsu her summoning beast was going to be a wolf, but it sounded a bit cliché, I know that the fox does to considering Naruto has the fox spirit in him, but what-ev.

Katsu: means _victory_.

Moriko: means _forest child. _

These meanings may come into play later.


	2. Chapter 2

For Thanksgiving I decided to _give_ the next chapter of "Light The Darkness"

Light The Darkness

Chapter 2:

When my life's on the line, I often wonder what inspires me, what invokes me to continue to be a ninja. It has always been clear, yet, I find myself contemplating it at the worst possible moments.

In reality, its like a curse. I never put to much thought into it, it was what it was. I was born into this life, taught its ways, and had no way out, no escape once you've become apart of it. I was going to be what I was born to be, nothing could have changed things.

I am a ninja.

My parents, their parents, and their parents-parents where ninjas. Highly praised and looked upon with the utmost respect, and because I was born into it, I was held in the same regard. Did I ask to be held in such high standing? No, I never asked for it, it was thrust upon me, like life usually is. I was taught to be the best, and if I wasn't, then by god I better try harder to emulate the best. It was expected.

Do I hate being a ninja? No. Do I sometimes wish that life was a tad easier? Hell yeah I do. Trying to make everyone proud, and living up to another's standing was draining after seventeen years.

Why am I babbling? Because I'm currently the _diversion _so that Katsu can safely get in and get out with our hostage under a strong genjutsu, so that I can transform flawlessly into the princess of the house, Aiko. Given a few days I should be able to obtain the ware bouts of a certain scroll that the neighboring lords require, get it to them, receive compensation, and then make my mysterious escape, leaving a sleeping Aiko where we got her. The only flaw was getting Aiko to not be completely blank of the few days that transpired when I was her. Luckily for me, genjutsu is a strong point of Katsu's, making it easy to manipulate the girls mind making her _remember_ the events that have transgressed. Or at least the ones she needs to know.

Really the plan was flawless, and maybe I'm enjoying my time tormenting these obnoxious guards that are on my tail a little too much, but I cant help exploiting ones faults, especially at a time like this.

"Moriko…" came the annoyed voice of my trusted comrade.

"What is it darling?" I returned, my voice dripping with a child's sugary sweet innocence. There was a moment of silence on the other end of the communicator, giving me enough time to back flip off the roof languidly.

"Dear, stop playing with your pray, its cruel," he mocked out, clear laughter in his voice.

Without further ado, I threw a few smoke bombs into the already densely fogged area and got into position. I made my exit and disappeared in the princesses bedroom, transforming into her as was needed.

"Stage one complete, focus on keeping her detained in the\at genjutsu, I'll work on step two in the morning," I whispered fiercely before transforming the ear piece into one of the girls earrings.

Loud footsteps could be heard rushing up the hall followed by swift murmured orders. Doors were swiftly opened, and the princess's father finally made his debut. The father was going to be a challenge. He was swift, and all thought I wasn't one to give out compliments, he deserved credit where credit was due. His mastery of perception was astounding, it even had me slightly nervous, but I studied my pray to the letter, and wasn't about to blow my cover.

Time to put my skills to the test, for the next couple of days I'd be Princess Aiko Fubashi, timid daughter of Lord Takashi Fubashi.

Lightly I made my way to the door, making sure to lower my eyes in a submissive manner before slowly, almost hesitantly opening the door. Lord Takashi looked pretty miffed, I could clearly make out the small vein in his neck protruding outward, a clear showing of his frustration. The man was going to have an ulcer before he even turned fifty.

"F-father, is everything alright," I murmured shyly, "I heard the guards."

"I want squad one and two to patrol the grounds, anything out of the norm and you better report back to me, three and four will stay in the house, patrol the halls, and protect my family at all costs," He spoke casually, he was exceptionally calm under pressure for a royal, it made him likeable. "Everything will be fine Aiko, please return to your room and get a little more rest until tomorrow, I will handle things accordingly."

"Y-yes father, please stay safe," I murmured closing the bedroom door accordingly.

The crackle of my communicator in my ear brought my attention to Katsu,

"Seems we've created quite the stir, be careful not to slip up," he muttered lightly.

"Have I ever failed before?" when there was silence on the other end she continued. "No I haven't, I've never taken on more than I can chew, don't worry with the way things are going, I may finish early."

"I take it stage two is complete," Katsu stated.

"I'm an expert, ye of little faith. On to step three."

"I have complete faith in you mi' lady, I do not however, like you being contained in the lords grounds, it makes escape more of a challenge," he paused momentarily and sighed. "This is good, the lord doesn't suspect you. I would like you to get out of there without a problem, the more time your there the more of a risk your taking."

"I know, no worries, this isn't my first mission, no reason to play _mother_ hen. So how's the princess?" Katsu growled at the mother hen comment but answered quickly enough.

"Sleeping like a baby, hasn't moved or made a peep, well besides a few light snores, maybe a mumble, but she's tightly under," this made me yawn, come to think of it, I haven't slept decently since we started this mission. Well, its now or never, not to mention I'd have to deranged not to use that glorious bed that laid before my feet.

"Hey Katsu I'm going to catch some Z's, don't stay up all night, get some sleep, she'll be under for the next 24 hours, take advantage while you can, I'll contact you when I wake up."

"Right, good night Riko," Katsu yawned.

"Good night Katsu," I murmured before transforming my communicator into an earring and collapsing unceremoniously into bed, pulling the sheets up and around me.

Tomorrow I'd spy and get those scrolls, or maybe I'd just sleep all day, Aiko's demure personality was a bit much, her father probably wouldn't bat an eye if she slept all day after the break in that occurred last night. The poor girl had such a limited amount of life experience that it almost made me feel bad, but then again certain people were just too fragile to go out into the world, and Aiko was just one of them. Being a royal probably didn't help either since most young royals were either too snobby and out of line, or just to shy and submissive.

Well enough of my sleep deprived ramblings, I'm hitting the silk and cashmere.

_I hope Katsu is as comfortable as I am, I'll have to steal a few of theses blankets for our place, I'm sure they wont even notice._


	3. Chapter 3

Happy New Years!

Light the Darkness

Alarms had to be the most irritating inventions ever created. One minute your floating in the world of dreams and the next your being startled awake by the screams of a thousand dying chickens. Who in their right mind wants to be awakened to such a deafening sound? Well apparently the little princess did. Leave it to me to disregard something like an alarm clock. Well if its waking up at the crack of dawn that these royals want, its waking up a the crack of dawn they'll get, this just motivates me more to steal the damn scroll and get the hell out of here.

"Why the hell would anyone want to wake up at," I turned to the alarm after rubbing the sleep from my eyes and almost screamed to the lords above, "good God it's four o'clock in the fucking morning!" as soon as I said that my speaker crackled.

"Yo Moriko, is there any trouble on your end?"

"No Katsu, just decided that I'm nabbing that scroll today and getting the hell out of here, waking up at four in the goddamn morning is insane!"

"Aw come on its only a few more hours earlier than we usually wake up to start our day," you could practically here the unshed laughter in that voice of his, which made me want to reach into the speaker and choke him within an inch of his life.

"We rise at six thirty Katsu, it's a whole two and a half hours more, and I don't care what anybody else thinks, that two and a half more hours really makes a goddamn difference."

"Well we knew before going into this mission what the princesses routines were and you didn't have a problem then,"

Grumbling I got out of bed and did a few daily stretches before looking at the sealing charm on my wrist.

"Watch over things Katsu, I'm transforming and making my way to the library for that scroll. I don't want this to be a bloody end, its going to be a hit and run type of mission this time," this will make the mission a bit harder, but I don't need enemies with power, money or influence on our backs. Doing a quick series of hand signs I slapped my right hand over my left wrist were my paper seal was my cloths instantly transforming into a flawless triple layered kimono, a style fit for a lords daughter. When Katsu and I were watching and taking notes on Princess Aiko's behavior and daily routines I noticed that she liked lavender's and sky blues with sophisticated yet beautiful patterns sowed into the cuffs and around the bottom edges of her Kimono's. In replication I used the same pattern that I saw her wear earlier that day in a light violet.

"Roger that, get in and get out, I'll start transporting Aiko. This is a wise decision, leaving her under a genjutsu for to long and it could become unstable.

"I realize that, give me a few minutes before you start on your way, I'll make a doppelganger to distract some of the guards," Within moments a mirror copy of the real me stood there. I had to admit that I missed my long light brown hair and blue eyes, lady Aiko was so plain with her unoriginal black hair and brown eyes, not to mention straight hair. I had a thing for layers and a bit of a wave couldn't kill anyone. "You know what your doing, cover yourself and distract the guards."

"Watch yourself love, the last thing we need is people figuring out that your not Ai," Katsu warned.

"No worries, I've done this type of mission before," I laughed out. "Hey by the way there's some really nice blankets here that would look just lovely in our room, and they seem to be on sale, would you like me to pick some up? There's plenty to spare," I asked remembering my silent promise to grab a few for the cottage.

"Oh I don't know, is there any cashmere? Maybe some silk?" he asked playfully.

"Of course, I would only borrow the best for you,"

"That 'a girl. Now shift that butt of yours in gear and lets get this show on the road."

I ran to the closet and grabbed a few blankets and stuffed them into the bag that I had carried here, along with a few extra pillows. I left the bag near the window hidden by the curtains for Katsu to grab on his way out.

Slowly I opened the door and scanned the halls for any one but like I planned all of the guards were out chasing after my doppelganger. Scanning again I made my way softly towards the library, if anyone ran by I didn't want to seem out of place by running around at top speed.

"How's step three coming? I'm almost at the manner," I heard Katsu murmur into the speaker.

"Things are running smoothly as originally planned, I'm slipping inside the library as we speak, your present is near the window. Slip in and place the girl in bed and then slip out, I'll meet you in the forest 20 kilometers from here due north," I whispered to Katsu before looking around.

"Roger that."

The library was nice I had to admit, but they had major errors in their security. First off, the scrolls were on display, a big no-no if you want the scrolls to remain in safe keeping. And then there was no one guarding it, again I was lucky that it was so early and my doppelganger was taking care of the guards while I worked.

"Hey I'm in and the princess is asleep and safe in her bed, you manage to grab that scroll yet?"

"No, it seems that the scroll we need is not among the ones on display, perhaps they did take the necessary precautions," I looked around and mentally recalled the layout that we received from the client. This would be the only place to house the scroll, unless…

"Maybe that case has a hidden switch or something, double check it before you go looking around."

"Yeah, that's what I'm doing, there's a lever on the bottom," I focused my chakra making sure that there wasn't a trap before pushing the slot aside and reaching in. "And Bingo was his name 'o," I couldn't help but chuckle until I felt a shift in the air and cursed. Of all the things that could happen, there just needed to be an alarm.

"The suspense is killing me, did you find it?" Katsu chirped eagerly in my ear.

"Yeah I'm rushing out of here, seems they did take precautions, a silent alarm went off, get out of there Katsu we need to make a run for it!" I quickly focused and did a quick hand sign, getting out of this Manner would be easy, there wasn't anyone around and I could swiftly get out without a trace of me being left behind.

"Riko, you there? Riko… Damn it, let me know if your okay!" Katsu's distressed and impatient voice cracked through the communicator's link.

"Katsu I made it out…"

"Geeze, thank the Gods above. Next time don't take so long to contact me!" I laughed through into my speaker and continued.

"Sorry, I'm heading towards you now, don't worry I had plenty of time to make it out of there. Its safe to say, step four complete, mission accomplished my friend, though that was incredibly easy compared to our usual missions. Even a novice could have done this mission, it's a bit of a disappointment." I raced to the tree as fast as I could move and lightly scaled it, coming face to face with Katsu.

"It was pretty weak, but the pay was good," Katsu added grabbing a small bag and turning to run. I grabbed the larger bag of borrowed goods, slipped it over my shoulder and joined Katsu, jumping from branch to branch.

"Your right about that, the clients probably knew that we would be disappointed with the mission and decided to pay us extra to motivate us to finish the job," I murmured. Most of our clients knew that we liked dangerous missions and the pay was the added bonus, this mission was a let down.

"If we decide to take a mission from this client again, I will make sure to ask whether the mission is worth accepting or not. It all makes sense now why the man was shifty before, to our displeasure it wasn't over how risky the mission was, but how risky giving it to us and dealing with us after would be. Question."

"Yeah your right, what is it Katsu?

"Can I eat him?"

"No Katsu, humans give you indigestion, we've been over this," I cried in mock seriousness. In reality Katsu didn't eat humans, but he compared himself to his brother species the wolf, and every now and then would ask to eat someone. He was too human to eat a human. He mentioned once that humans don't smell like food, therefore he'd remain eating what I provided for him.

"Kill joy," Katsu added, a firm smirk in place.

"Just looking out for your health, if you want I'll make you a nice steak when we get back, provided of course that you go to our client and get the rest of our money." Katsu sighed dramatically before smiling;

"Wouldn't have it any other way."

"Good, now lets get back to our place, I'm looking forward to a good nights sleep, and a hot shower."


	4. Chapter 4

I do not own the characters of Naruto

Light The Darkness

Chapter 4

Time seemed to stand still. For a moment it felt as though I were witnessing one of my distant memories, one from my childhood. My heart warmed as nostalgia swept through me.

"-so you see he could really use your help."

I chuckled and gazed around my surroundings. My cottage was nestled perfectly in a small clearing, part of a larger forest full of lush large oaks that kept unwanted visitors at bay. A small garden of herbs and vegetables sat to the right of the cottage, being lightly shaded from the blistering sun. I was currently sitting at the picnic table with Katsu and an old ally of sorts.

"I'm sorry but we just got back from a mission, and though it was mediocre at best, we haven't been home in a while. Does he really need us right now?" declared Katsu as he noticed Morikos longing look around their home.

"I'm afraid I cant very well leave here with out you two, he was adamant about getting your help and opinion."

Sighing, I took one last glance at my home, my dream home really. It was away from the hustle and bustle of the villages, but close enough that I could get there in post haste if necessary. It was peaceful, and until you've experienced true peace and quiet, you know not the value. It had no price.

"Look here _pup _we just got back, we want to rest, you know, take a break, put our feet up" Katsu sneered out. "Tell your _master_ that we don't come running when called like amorous _dogs._"

"Hey! I'll have you know that I'm at least twice your age fluff puff!"

Growling erupted between the two as they glared at one another. It wasn't hate between the two, it was almost like a twisted form of camaraderie. They always growled at each other but as soon as there was trouble they easily had each others back.

"Don't worry Pakkun, we'll be there. What do we have, like a half a days travel, if that?"

"Yeah, just a couple hours walking, maybe less," Katsu grumbled out.

"Oh by the way he needs you there in about," Pakkun looked down at his imaginary watch and hummed dramatically, "oh about an hour, probably about a half an hour now adding in the wasted half hour of chit chat."

Stunned, both looked at each other and then turned to a smiling Pakkun. He was serious.

"Damn it Pakkun why didn't you say something before?"

"Stupid dog," grumbled Katsu.

_Well, there's nothing we can do about it now._

"Katsu, as much as I despise this course of action, we're going to split up a bit," I almost laughed as his jaw dropped. "We wont be that far apart, don't worry so much." Throwing him a reassuring smile I continued, "I'm going to go on ahead while you pack up few necessities for our stay in Konoha. When your done packing I want you to seal up the house and head to the village, I have few doubts that you'll know were I'll be from there."

I ruffled his fur affectionately and took off. Pakkun was just like his owner in this regard, always late getting to the point, but I'll be damned if I'm late because of it. Was I excited to be getting back to Konoha? Hell yes I was, I hadn't been there in a good five years, well to stay anyway. When my informant told me about what happened to Sarutobi at the hands of Orochimaru, I was livid, and for a time I was going to track the bastard down and take care of him. It would have been so easy, I would have flew in and taken him out the assassins way. Unfortunately Katsu didn't want me to go after him, and in doing so talked me out of it, for now anyway. I may not be the one to strike the bastard down, but I know that I have a hand in his death.

I smirked at the memory. It would seem that the fox had inside information that I didn't, and he was being sneaky about it and not sharing. What ever it was I'd know about it eventually.

Looking towards the sky I continued on. Give or take I'd be there in a few minutes.

* * *

"So I take it that you haven't told her about Orochimaru yet have you?" asked Pakkun.

"Nope. The elders said that things would pan out the way that they were supposed to. If I had went along with Moriko that day after Orochimaru, she would have killed him, there's no doubt in my mind that she wouldn't have easily succeeded. Hey you wanna' throw her clothes in that bag for me?" Rummaging around, Katsu threw her herb pack into the larger duffle bag that Pakkun was folding cloths into.

"Wouldn't things have been better if she'd killed that masochistic _snake_?"

"No, the elders said that he'd meet his end, but for now he still had a purpose. For what, I have no idea."

"Sounds like a bunch of crap to me," Pakkun muttered as he finished folding and placing the clothes in the bag.

"Yeah, but whatever the reason, he's a live for it," Katsu sighed, throwing a few extra shuriken and kunai into the bags before continuing. "Moriko was friends with Sarutobi, looked up to him as a grandfather, like most of the people in the village. It was only natural for her to want to strike the snake down, but she also knows now that its not her destiny to do so."

"But if she ever got the chance-?"

"No, I don't think that she'd instantly take it. She's intelligent enough to understand that it isn't her place. It's been three years now, she's gotten over it for the most part, as she puts it 'karma's a bitch,"' they chuckled lightly together before throwing a few more needed items into the bags.

Katsu concentrated for a second, holding the image in his brain and then placed his hands together, transforming into a more suitable form to carry the two bags. A pair of strong human hands reached out and grabbed the two bags, flinging them over a vested shoulder.

"Humans have it easy, opposable thumbs, longer limbs, the ability to walk on two feet~" Katsu stretched his new body with a chuckle and threw Pakkun on his shoulder for good measure before bolting steadily out the door and into the tree line, following in the same direction that Moriko had traveled in minutes before.

* * *

_Now were is that damn knuckle head…?_


	5. Chapter 5

_I don't own Naruto, though it would be fun._

Light The Darkness

Chapter 5

It's said that absence makes the heart grow fonder, and in a way it did. You never know quite what you have until its gone.

The village was beautiful, bustling with villagers and children laughing running through the streets. My last visit had been brief, only to pay my respects to Sarutobi, my only regret not being their before his death, to speak to him in person instead of by letter, but I knew he had understood.

So here I am smiling like a fool standing on the old water tower looking over the village, taking in all the changes. Lady Tsunade was good for this village; when I last was here, goodness, the place was in serious disarray, destroyed more like it, but I was trying to look at the bright side.

It had definitely been a while since I had graced the Leaf village with my presence, I almost felt guilty. Now don't get me wrong I kept in touch via letter with multiple friends here, but, it just wasn't the same as being in person.

"Perhaps three years is a bit to long to be away, what do you think Sarutobi?" I whispered as the wind embraced my return. I looked toward the sky, I wasn't incredibly spiritual mind you, but he had an unforgettably strong spirit, up there he was definitely looking over the village, I was sure of that.

Well, enough scanning the village, I had someone awaiting my presence, my favorite ninja actually. I had missed him more than words could express, and while I planned on coming back to visit him after my reprieve, I didn't expect it to be this soon as a request.

* * *

Meanwhile Katsu was about fifteen minutes away from the village, bags and puppy in hand.

"So… I feel as though I forgot to mention something," Pakkun muttered.

Raising an eyebrow Katsu continued on, jumping rhythmically from branch to branch. "Really now? Must be your memory going, old age and all, if I were you I'd get that checked."

"And if I were you, I'd be more respectful toward your elders," he growled out.

"Huh, good thing your not me then," Katsu smirked. "I must admit though, I'd probably be there by now, chilling with Kakashi and Moriko if I didn't have to carry your lard ass."

"Fuck you!" Pakkun managed to growl out from his position on Katsu's shoulder, only to be struck dumbfounded, "Wait, that's it!" he announced.

"What's it?"

"I remember now, I forgot to tell Moriko where to meet him, I can't believe it slipped my mind like that," he looked pensive, lost in thought before asking, "You think she'll find him anyway?"

Katsu almost, just almost, stopped running and slapped a hand over his face in complete disbelief; instead he managed to keep pace and instead gave him the "are you fuckin' kidding me?" look. "You do realize that she's a jonin right? And not just any Jonin, no, she's Moriko, all she has to do is scan the area and she'll recognize his chakra signature, she won't have a problem finding him, if anything he'd have trouble finding her."

* * *

"Who ever this person is Kakashi sensei, she's late!" a blond haired boy exclaimed.

"Naruto, calm down, if she's a friend of Kakashi's then we can't expect her to be time efficient," a young woman with a head of pink hair responded.

Kakashi briefly scratched the back of his head, honestly that assumption had far to many flaws in realms of logic to be corrected. If it were any other person that was late he wouldn't have cared, but Moriko was never more than a minute or two late, and when it seriously counted her timing was more than impeccable. So, he thought, what could the real hold up be?

5... _None of them have noticed._

4... _I looked at the gathering of students._

3... _My attention pulled toward my old instructor, Tsunade_.

2... _Kakashi._

1... _Time to make my debut_

Before Kakashi could answer Moriko swept through the training field and had tackled him in a hug, the impact almost knocking them both down, but luckily Kakashi had always been quick on his feet and the flow of chakra stabilized them both, Moriko to busy rapping her arms and legs around him laughing to notice.

* * *

"Kakashi darling, I've missed your adorable butt!" If there wasn't such a large audience I would have coped a feel, mind you, it's not molestation if the recipient is a giant perv and your best friend, or at least that's what I tell myself. I couldn't help but notice that he seemed more built than when we last saw one another, if I recall correctly it had been a whole five years, other than that letters kept us updated and in contact.

"I would think you would miss more than my _butt, _Moriko," he chuckled lightly and returned the embrace.

"Well, if we had less of an audience I'd rip off this restricting uniform and show you what I missed the most, but that would be incredibly un-lady like," I grinned, while he did have a nice backside, I missed the easy banter we shared more than anything else.

"Now-now Moriko, this is neither the time nor the place for such conversation, perhaps tonight after dinner," he smiled easily, not a fake one, no this was the real deal. If anyone else truly knew him they'd know that he rarely gave a real smile, but when his past was briefly forgotten, his eyes sparked with life and that's when you knew he was smiling.

I gave him another hug before dropping to the ground and rushing to give Tsunade a quick hug.

Now that I was content with greetings I looking towards the students, yup, my job was going to be more difficult than I originally thought. Ninety percent of them were shocked, eyes wide mouth slightly agape. Either their shocked that I suddenly appeared giving Kakashi a hug, or their shocked that I appeared at all. I was really thinking it was the later, which meant that Kakashi still had his books instead of a real girlfriend.

Well, he wasn't gay and he read porn, so things must be working right. He was incredibly handsome, built and toned, yet wasn't disgustingly huge. So why wasn't he hitched up with a set of twins by now?

"So you're the chick that's suppose to help train us?" the blond exclaimed again. I briefly considered if I should answer the blatantly obvious question, but before I could Kakashi spoke up again.

"Where's Katsu?"

"Good question, while I don't condone splitting up, he stayed behind a few extra minutes to pack a couple bags. If I'm right then he already entered the village stopped at your place and is on his way here with Pakkun," I grinned when Katsu made his way leisurely to my side a few seconds later.

"Kakashi, long time no see, mind taking your puppy back?"

"It's been too long."

I briefly heard the rest of the conversation but my attention was on the students. By no means was I cocky about my abilities, but I was confident and knew what I was doing. I had learned over the years that people in general were incredibly easy to read, all with certain habits and features that distinguished them into categories. Stature was a good place to start, you could always tell whom were the cautious or impatient ones, and then if I had them walk I'm sure that I could weed out abilities in battle and ways to improve. Simple really, but it was how I was going to start this shindig.

"Well I believe intro's are in order, so I'm Moriko and this is my partner Katsu. Obviously I'm here to help train you, and while I'll be training you I'll mostly give pointers. You all seem capable of being Jonin level. I have my own way of doing things so if you could all spread out a distance from one another," all of them listened and moved a bit away from one another "Oh, and I'd prefer peace and quiet as I make my rounds."

The students would probably think I was a fruit cake, but I wanted results, so I began from left to right walking around each student, each giving me their name as I jotted down details on my observations. A also marked which ones stood out to me the most.

_Neji Hyuuga would take any kind of training I gave, accept it, and complete it flawlessly. Since he was going to be easy I'd give him pointers and maybe secret techniques that I'd read about over the years pertaining to the gentle fist_.

_Shikamaru Nara was incredibly calm, and while I liked calm and quiet people, I knew from experience that while he'd master what was given, he'd only do what was required and no more than that_.

_If I'm right Ino Yamanaka is weak in a close face battle and easily angered, I'll have to push her a bit, but in no time she'll improve_.

_Hinata Hyuuga, she seems to want to improve and will take criticism well, seems a bit soft hearted but we'll see as we go on_.

_Naruto Uzumaki, a bit loud and not as easily trained but has determination and with the right teaching I'm sure he'll improve_.

Surprisingly all of them are unique in their own way. The teams were well balanced which was good, especially on a mission. I'll just have to give separate training regiments. When I'm comfortable with that I'll pare them up with each other and change pairs every other day. From what I understood this was a group mission, which means that as a group they need to understand one another as a whole.

After I finished observing the last student, I made my way towards the awaiting Kakashi and Katsu, briefly highlighting certain aspects of each student as I walked. Kakashi looked a bit surprised when I handed over my observations.

"I briefly added personality traits and what I believe to be certain students weaknesses, look through it and add anything you want, tonight and tomorrow I'll make a beginning training regiment." I smiled as he looked it over.

"All you did was walk around us, how do you know what training needs to be done when you haven't seen us move?" Neji stepped forward his eyebrows furrowed in thought.

"You all stand how you fight. Honestly it sounds strange to you, but if you observe one another you can see each others traits and personality. If you know a persons traits you can deduce their fighting style," each student looked around at one another questioning my sanity I'm sure.

"But if you must know I didn't just walk around observing, I was also testing chakra flares, each time I silently and slowly let my chakra flow around each of you, seeing which parts you caught on and which you didn't, I also got to see reaction time and your ability to respond to chakra. None of you knew what I was doing, so none of you could cover your flaws."

Some of the students looked panicked and I almost laughed. None of them should be worried, they all responded subconsciously, and while some needed work, it wasn't nearly as bad as I had originally thought. "No reason to panic, you all did fine. I'd test a few of you now, but it's been a long day and I'd rather take a day or two to review my observations and right a training regiment," deciding I should warn them I added "make sure you all rest up tonight and tomorrow, eat plenty of vegetables and meat. I'll be pushing you all way past your breaking points, take rest while you can. You all are dismissed."

There was a shocked silence before the students all dispersed. I may have said that I'd never take on a student, but I couldn't help but mildly enjoy the experience.

"You sure you've never had students before?" Kakashi asked lightly.

"Pretty sure, though if I had them I'm almost positive that they'd wipe the floor with yours," I added laughing outright. "Just kidding hun, your going to have to tell me what's been going on and all about these students of yours."

"Well then I'll be off, this place isn't going to run itself. It's good to see you back Moriko," Tsunade interrupted gruffly before making her way towards her office.

"Later Tsunade," I said as I turned my attention back to a thoughtful Kakashi. "What's on your mind sweet cheeks?"

Kakashi grinned, "You know, all of these references to my ass are going to make me wonder if you really only showed up for my body, not my students."

"Your first clue was that she's never had a student," Katsu chirped in.

Laughing the trio made their way to Kakashi's apartment.


End file.
